Before & After: My China Cabinet

You may recall this post regarding the great deal I got on a china cabinet and buffet. At the time I didn't know what route to take as far as refinishing and updating the two pieces of furniture.

I was torn-- I didn't know whether to paint them or to strip them and re-stain a deeper color.

The one thing I was certain about what that neither piece of furniture was going in my home without a little bit of updating.

My indecision caused me to seriously stall. I bought them in October of 2011, which was over a year ago.  They've been store in my parents' basement all this time.

Well, inspiration finally hit me. While in Senoia, GA to check out the Southern Living Dream Home, mom and I shopped around the little downtown area. One store had the prettiest furniture. I loved the table, the buffet, the desk, the china cabinet. Everything had great rustic chic finish that I loved.

Upon talking to the store owner we learned that she had done all of the furniture herself with Annie Sloan's Chalk Paint & Wax.

***Please note: not to be confused with ChalkBOARD Paint, which is not the same thing***

I was sold!! I bought the color French Linen, which is a grey with brown undertones (I actually just made that up about the undertones but I think it's a fair description). I FINALLY HAD A PLAN FOR THE CHINA CABINET.

Let me refresh your memory....

BEFORE:

 

Not exactly the look I was going for.

Over the past weekend mom and I taped off the glass and went to town with the Chalk Paint.

Now, what is so great about this paint is that you don't have to sand or prime the furniture. You just have to start painting it. So easy.

I applied two coats of the French Linen. The paint dries really fast. 30 minutes fast. After the two coats of the paint I used the Annie Sloan wax brush to apply two coats of the clear wax. The wax essentially gives the matte finish of the of the chalk paint a little more glossy look and seals the paint.

I actually bought the dark wax as well but after testing it out on one of the cabinet fronts I decided not to got that route.


The left is with the clear wax only. The right shows how the dark wax distresses it more.

I allowed the clear wax to "cure" for 48 hours. At that point I had my dad and Ryan bring my new china cabinet home to mama.

Mom and I unpacked my china last night and filled the china cabinet up with pretties.

HERE IS THE AFTER:

(disclaimer- the pics are with my iPhone. My big camera was dead and I couldn't wait to share... so not the best quality)
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I absolutely LOVE it! Like LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it. I realize that I need a bigger statement piece on top. I just placed that platter on top to get a feel for it. Ryan was amazed that I had all this fancy china stashed around the house (and at my parents).

It's not big enough to display all of my china so I stored the rest in the cabinet space below.

Here's the few from the living room!

(The table you see pictured above is abuot to become part of another project which will make way for a new table. We're talking reclaimed wood and stuff.)

Love. Now, the buffet is just calling to be "chalked" and maybe even the coffee table too!

O.T.W. Catch up Post (two weekends/weeks coming at you)

Ah man, it's been nonstop for Ryan and I the last few weeks. From football games and tailgate parties to wedding showers and fashions shows we've been covering a lot of ground around these parts.

And to even think that the holidays are practically here is just craziness!

So let's play catch up since I've been MIA for a hot minute.

In past two weeks I have:

HIT UP A CONCERT

 

Thanks to my brother who provided tickets for everyone we enjoyed Easton Corbin, Deirks Bentley and Craig Morgan.

Ali, Deidra and I joined my brother and a few of his friends for a fun night of good ole country music. That's what I love about Sundays...

CELEBRATED WITH ALANA & CLINT

My friend, Alana's wedding is quickly approaching. She and her fiance live in Ohio. They came home one weekend so that we could enjoy a bridal tea in Alana's honor as well as enjoy a tailgate themed couples shower for the two of them.

We may or may not have had a dance off with the moms in attendance. #momswon

CO-HOSTED WITH LACEY FOR "GIRLS NIGHT OUT"

Lacey and I co-hosted for the second time on At Home with Kenny Dean.

 

Lacey and I both had crazy jackets to wear during one segment of the show. I went the the leopard (above, picture of me in said jacket while getting ready) that I actually thrifted.

Topics for this show ranged from "Twists on the Classic Turtle Neck" to "How to Rock Printed Hosiery"

It is so much fun. I like to think we're a big hit in our small town.

MODELED IN A FASHION SHOW

Two of our local boutique type stores hosted a joint fashion show as a fundraiser for Alexander City's Education Foundation. Thanks to my TV co-host, Lacey, I found myself modeling for the store Little Black Dress.

Oh Look! I added a personal touch from my very own closet-- polka-dotted hoses!

After a few glasses of wine I found that if I were only a foot taller (I'm only about 5'3") I probably would have loved being an actual model. Except I like to eat and real models probably don't chit chat with onlookers in attendance (you know my mom and bff were in the audience).

TAILGATED FOR AUBURN/GEORGIA GAME

Ryan and I headed to The Plains for the Auburn v. Georgia game. We had such a fun weekend with friends that we hadn't seen in a few months.

Please note, the blazer in the middle pic above-- It's from 2005. I shopped my closet and found a fun little gem.

I love Auburn with my whole heart, but this season has been a tough one--- I will be glad to see it go.

The best part about the actual game (outside of who I attended it with- ALI) was the hot dog.

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So that should bring you up to date on our lives. Busy, Busy, Busy and loving every minute of it.

O.T.W. Fall Getaway, Part II

Part II of our Fall Adventure takes us from Stone Mountain, GA to Senoia, GA.

Back in July of this year Southern Living Magazine released their issue with the cover story being the 2012 Idea House. The Idea House is a beautifully decorated farmhouse in Senoia, GA. It was instant love for me. Truly everything I would include in my dream home. Literally from the wrap around porch to the open floor plan to the amazing back yard-- it would all be included in the home of my dreams (hopefully one day).

 

As I read and reread the issue of Southern Living I knew I had to make it Senoia to tour the house. Senoia is about an hour from Stone Mountain so after a quick breakfast we loaded up and headed that way.

I knew from the article in the magazine that Fried Green Tomatoes and Driving Mrs. Daisy were both filmed in this small southern town. However, once we got there we realized the several other movies were made there.

Currently AMC's The Walking Dead is being filmed there. I love anything with celebrity ties and this had me so excited.

The show is currently set in the fictional town of Woodbury, GA so the town had a Bank of Woodbury and banners throughout the downtown area.

The downtown/main street area was the cutest! It is the quintessential southern town.

As we shopped we made small talk with one of the owners and he explained that as they film The Walking Dead the production company blacks out their shop windows and film in the street out front while business goes on as usual with patrons entering using the back door.

After touring the quaint downtown area we headed to Maguire's Irish Pub for lunch. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was perfect. Ryan got crazy and ordered a mac-n-cheese burger. Who has ever heard of such? Lunch was great.

After lunch we made our way to the 2012 Southern Living Idea House. I thought this house was beautiful when I saw it in the magazine, but in real life I was head over heels in LOVE. I can't even explain how much this house is every single thing I could ever want.

Just at home on the front stoop

Ryan quickly informed me that I wasn't alone in that thought process, as it was probably every other persons dream home too. That's fine... I can share my dream with others.

The house was decorated for the holidays. They had some great ideas that anyone could DIY.  The wreaths were made of magnolia leaves and the tables were decorated with jars of evergreen and cranberries.

Here is a picture of the living room when not decorated for Christmas:

From Southern Living's website

Look! I'm at home in the dinning area-- ready to host a holiday gathering.

The gingham painted pattern in the "keeping room" was awesome.

Some of the reoccurring things in the house included sliding barn doors, old trunks, and paintings of cows. All things I love.

I couldn't help but think of my friend, Katie, in the room below because her wedding bouquet had the dried Lily pad seed pods that are displayed in the bowl. That Katie is always in the know about what's cool.

I had a tough time figuring out what the print above meant. Finally it came to me-- it's Southern twang for A T L Georgia (because that's how we say it down here) 

In the magazine the deer painting in this sitting area looked like this:



from Southern Living website

But in real life it was much more textured.

 

The idea house had lots of trends that we had seen the day before at the Country Living Fair such as the paint by numbers paintings, the deer antlers,  burlap, and skeleton keys.

The hardwood floors, below, are restored from the original portion of the farmhouse dating back to the 1800's.

If this were my home you would be invited to roast marshmallows by the outdoor fire pit.  We would also sip wine here and discuss life and then I would ask you to sleep over in the guest room so as not to drive home from Senoia. The next morning I would cook you breakfast in my fancy kitchen while you sipped coffee in the keeping room. If only....

The 2010 Southern Living Idea Home was also built in this small town and was open for tours, although it was unfurnished and not decorated. The 2010 idea house was actually a brownstone similar to what one would find in Savannah, GA.

The back of the brownstone, pictured below, backs up to a pond and looks out toward the 2012 Farmhouse.

There was a real estate agent on site at the brownstone. She and I chatted regarding pricing and why Southern Living chose to do more than one idea house in this small town.

She explained that eventually this entire area will be developed into a small subdivision of sorts. As it turns out, one of the owners of the production company fell in love with this area and decided to develop the community. The lots are marked off for sale and the brownstone is up for sale for just under $1 million.

Here are a couple of the houses in that surroud the pond in the community:

Truth be told, I would move into this smaller white one tomorrow. How cute is it?

The Farm House has already been sold and went for somewhere between $550K and $600K.

If I had half a million dollars readily avalible to purchase one of the homes I would be moving to Senoia, GA. I would open a small shop in downtown. I fell in love.

O.T.W.- A Fall Getaway, Part I

What a great fall weekend we had. Every now and then a weekend getaway is just what the doctor ordered.

Mom, Dad, Ryan and I went spent the weekend together in Georgia for all kinds of Fall Fun!

Saturday morning we were up bright and early and on the road around 6:30 a.m. We ventured over to Stone Mountain, GA for the Country Living Fair and a day of fun.

We didn't really know what to expect in regard to the Country Living Fair, but from what we had heard we knew it would be right up our alley (for mom and I anyway). As far as Dad and Ryan they enjoyed it and were really good sports all weekend. Mom and I shopped and came up all sorts of DIY's for the men to tackle.

We arrived at Stone Mountain around 10:00 a.m and started our day.

Upon entering the fair grounds we were a little overwhelmed. There were so many people, so many booths, and so many directions that it was tough to know where to start.

The wire wienie dog may live at my home now.

But with a map in hand we dove right in. One of the vendors I began talking to described the Country Living Fair as being ETSY in real life. I honestly couldn't have agreed more.

Booths included art work, antiques, jewelry and all things handmade from soaps to pillows.

I could have filled a truck up with furniture and decor, but alas I didn't have the funds or the truck so I made a few simple purchases.

We ate lunch at the fair which consisted of ribbon fires, corn pups, kettle popcorn, and fried pickles. Super healthy!

Ryan may or may not get tired of posing for pictures. ha.

After spending several hours conquering the Country Living Fair we decided to check out the rest of Stone Mountain Park.

I had never been to Stone Mountain State Park so I had no idea of what all it had to offer. As it turns out it is a beautiful park with all sorts of things to do. From walking trails to campgrounds, from a train ride to a Skyride to the top of the Stone Mountain it had plenty to fun things for the weekend.

The first thing we wanted to do after lunch was take the Skyride up the top of the mountain.

The Stone "Mountain" goes roughly 1100 feet up and 10 miles below ground.

I asked everyone to convey how scared they were about going to the top in a photo:

Apparently Ryan smiles in the face of danger, Dad is amused/scared/excited, Mom said I could NOT put her scared pic on the Internet, and I'm panic stricken.

It was beautiful from the top of the mountain. Probably one of our favorite parts of the trip.

After taking in the veiws we headed back down to check out a few of the other treasures the park had to offer.

That evening we went to the Laser Show (been there done that-- probably wouldn't do it again) and then had dinner and cocktails at a little cafe in town.

 

Up next... Part II which will include A Dream Home, a semi celebrity town, and lunch at an Irish Pub.